Egg-tester.



c. VON CULIN.

EGG TESTER.

' APPLICATION FILED JULYIZ'. 1915.

1,210,733. Patented Jan.2,1917.

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UNITED STATES PATENT FFIE CLAYTON VON CULIN, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO GEORGE WATSON BEACH, OF SAYBROOK, CONNECTICUT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

EGG-TESTER.

Patented J an. 2, 1917.

Application filed July 12, 1915. Serial NO. 39,367.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CLAYTON VON CULIN, a citizen of the United States, residing at New York, in the county'of New York and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Egg- Testers; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to new anduseful V improvements in egg testers and more parand arrangement of parts which will be herein referred to and more particularly pointed out in the specification and claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a'front view of my improved egg tester; Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same; Fig.

3 is an enlarged front view of the lightand means for varying the size of'the egg receiving opening, partly insection; Fig. 4 is a horizontal section onthe line H of Fig. 1 Fig. 5 is a central verticallongitudinal section on line 5 5 of Fig. 1; Fig. 6 is a detail perspective of the vertical upright as attached to one of'the poles of the battery; and Fig. 7 is a detail perspective of the supporting bracket that holds the lamp.

In describing my invention, I'shall refer to the drawings in which similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several views and in which numeral 1 designates the battery, which in this instance is shown of the ordinary dry cell type having the two poles 2 and 3 projecting therefrom in the manner usual in devices of this character.

The lighting source of this egg tester consists of an'incandescent electric lamp 4 centrally disposed in a reflector 5 as clearly shown in Fig. 4 of the drawings. Around the reflector 5 is a rectangular shaped block which forms a casing 6 which has a recessed open front covered by a face plate 8, which has therein an egg receiving opening 8.

This face plate 8 consists of a sheet of any desired material, for instance pasteboard, which is substantially rectangular in shape and has rearwardly turned upper and lower edges forming attaching flanges 9 with vertically directed ends 10 adapted to be p0 sitioned on the rearwardly turned side edges 11, which constitute additional attaching flanges. The upper and lower flanges 11 are spaced apart as shown at 12 for a purpose to be hereinafter more fully set forth.

The flanges of the face plate 8 are secured to the sides of the casing 6 in such a manner that the face plate 8 will be spaced a short distance from the front of the said casing, so that a pair of substantially rectangular sliding members may be positioned *therebetween. These sliding members which are numbered 13 and 14, are substantially rectangular in shape, and'are of a slightly shorter length than the length of the face plate and casing to allow them to slide therebetween. 'Goacting apertures 15 and 16 are formed in the said slides, and when the same'are in operative position, the two opposed semi-circular edges of the said apertures 15 and 16 are adapted to form egg receiving faces upon reducing the size of the egg receiving aperture 8 in the face plate 8.

The slide members 13 and 14 have formed on their outer edgesjintegrally projecting tabs 17 which are adapted to project laterally from the sides of the face plate 8, through the openings 12 therein as clearly shown in Figs. 1 and 3 of the drawings. By

this means, the sliding members may be very easily and simply operated to accomplish their purpose of reducing and enlarging the size of the egg'receiving opening.

This egg tester is adapted to be secured in contact with the battery 1, and adjustably positioned with respect thereto by means of an L-shaped supporting bracket 18. This L-shaped supporting bracket 18 has an aperture 19 in its upper end which is adapted to engage the projecting end of the reflector 5 that surrounds one terminal of the electric lamp 4. The opposite end of the bracket 18 is pointed as shown at 20 and is engaged with the back of the casing 7 as shown in with the vertical upright 23, whereby the circuit will beconipleted and the lamp lighted,

Fig. 5 of the drawings. The base portion of this L-shapedbracket 18 is provided with a longitudinally extending slot;21, through which the pole 2 of the battery is adapted to project, and said pole is firmly held, in con-- tact therewith by means of the nut 22 which engages the same and clamps the base portion of the bracket thereto. By this means,

it will be noted, that the supporting bracket may be positionedin various longitudinally adjustable positions with respectto the top of the battery 1 for a purpose to be herein after more fully described. This attaching bracket 18 is formed "of a piece of spring 111811211 which has a certain aniount'of spring or resiliency to allow the same to be moved backward and forward when in operative position.

Projecting upwardly from the pole 3 of the battery is a vertical support 23 which has extending laterally therefrom, a slotted attaching foot 2 1 which is connected to the pole 3 of .the battery by means of the secur ing cap 25. Thisvertical upright 23 which is adapted to form a circuit closing contact with the outer'terminal lamp 4, is of the same height as the bracket 18 which .supports the said lamp.

In operation, when the parts of this device are assembled, as shown in Figs 1 and 2 of the drawings, and, it is desired to test an egg, the egg is held in front of the egg receivin 0 )enin 8 in the face Jl'ate 8 and the said plateiand casing move backward until the end terminal of the lamp 4t contacts The method of testing an egg when held in this position is too well known to need any further explanation.

Upon releasing the casing, the lamp will be thrown out of contact with the upright 23, owing to the fact that the supporting bracket 18 is formed of spring metal: and hence, while the lamp is lighted, it will be under a constant pressure to return to its normal inoperative position.

The above described engagements of the support, and the vertical upright, with the poles of the battery .1, allow various ad"- justments of this device as will be obvious.

A most essential feature of my invention relates tothe operation of the coacting'apertured slides 13 and 14 which are positioned between the face plate 8 and the casing 7. If the egg which is held over the egg re- 7 ceiving aperture 8 in the face plate 8 is too small for said aperture, all that it is necessary to do to regulate the aperture to any sized egg, -is to pull laterally on the projecting tabs 17 at the side of the faceplate, whereby the egg engaging faces 15 and 16 of the slides 13 and 14 will be drawn together and will adjust themselves to the size of the egg. It will be noted in this adjustment that no matter what size the aperture is made, the light or lamp 1 which is positioned just behind the aperture will always be centrally alined with the said opening. This is an essential feature of my invention as in no case will the light be reflected from one side but will always be positioned in the exactcenter behindthe egg.

' The direct and permanent alinement of the light with, the center of the aperture over which the egg is disposed, is necessary in a device of this character owing to the fact that the electric lamp used is so small, that even with the help of the reiiector 5, it isneccssa'ry to position the same directly behind the egg, so that the full force of the direct rays of light will be projected therethrou'gh. If the lamp were positioned at one "side of the aperture, while it would be possible to ma manner test the egg from the light in thispositiom it is an obvious and necessary improvement to posi-,

construction'of my improved egg tester, the

manner of applying the same to use and the operation thereof will be readily understood audit will be seen "that Ihave provided a simple, inexpensive and efficient means for carrying out the objectsof'this invention.

1. An egg tester comprising aca'sing having in its'frontan egg receiving opening,

a source of light in said casing; in perma nent' alinement wlth theaxls of said opening, and a pair of oppositely moving. slides adjacent the rear side, of'-s,aid front of the casing, each of said 1 slides having an opening, whichopenings are adapted for total or partial registration with. each other and with said openingi-n the casing, whereby the active area of the lattermay be varied to permit eggs of diiferent s'izes to :be tested and to always aline: the eggs with .the source oflight.

2. An egg testercomprising arectangular block having in its front face a recess and having at substantially the center of said recess a source oflight, a, pair of flat rectangular overlapped slides extending over said recess in sliding engagement with-the front face of the block, the outer upright edges of said. slides having integral operat ing tabs projecting beyond the. edges of the block while the upper and lower edges of. said slides are disposed substantially flush Gopies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the mit eggs of different sizes to be tested and to always aline said eggs with the source of light.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set 15 my hand in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

CLAYTON VON GULIN.

Witnesses:

FREDERICK B. BLACKMAN, JOHN J. CARROLL.

Commissioner of Patents.

Washington, D. C. 

